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Politics and Government News
MPR News Staff

Klobuchar says Senate is close to approving next U.S. attorney for Minnesota

U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger
Andrew Luger, then U.S. attorney for the state of Minnesota, speaks at a town hall meeting presented by Voice of East African Women in Minneapolis on Oct. 15, 2015. Luger has been nominated to serve as U.S. Attorney for Minnesota again.
Courtney Perry for MPR News file

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U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar says Minnesota will soon have a permanent U.S. attorney in place.

The federal Department of Justice office in Minneapolis has been headed by acting U.S. Attorney Charles Kovats. Last November, President Joe Biden nominated former U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger, who held the same post during the Obama administration, for the permanent role.

Klobuchar, a close ally of Luger, told MPR's Cathy Wurzer on Wednesday morning that Luger is on the verge of Senate approval, despite a political stalemate from a Republican senator.

"I got him through a procedural hurdle in the Senate and his vote should be today or tomorrow, his final vote as U.S. attorney," Klobuchar said. "(Arkansas Sen.) Tom Cotton is blocking all U.S. attorneys, all marshals, and I was able to get Andy ahead of the list and he should be confirmed in the next two days."

Luger is currently in private practice at the Minneapolis legal firm Jones Day. He also worked as an assistant U.S. attorney in Minneapolis in the 1990s.

Klobuchar also spoke with Morning Edition about the ongoing confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson.

Jackson faced aggressive questioning on Tuesday from some Republican senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee. But Klobuchar said she thinks Jackson will draw some GOP support in the final Senate vote on her nomination.

"Senators (Susan) Collins and (Lisa) Murkowski have issued positive statements before, they voted for her before. She's always had bipartisan support for every position," Klobuchar said. "She's been up for (U.S.) District Court, Sentencing Guidelines Commission, as well as the D.C. Court of Appeals. So I think she will pick up some Republican support."